GoPro (GPRO) has erased all of its gains since its IPO base breakout in late August, which was two months after the action camera company went public. Shares sank 12% on the news that Apple (AAPL) has been granted patents relating to a mountable sports camera that can be controlled with a smart watch. The sell-off marks GoPro’s largest single-day drop ever. Meanwhile, GoPro chip supplier Ambarella (AMBA) fell 2.6%. IBD TV’s Alissa Williams
GoPro stock wiped out Tuesday on speculation that Apple might enter the action camera market. GoPro (GPRO) shares were down 12% to below 50 in late afternoon trading on the stock market today. Shares traded as low as 48.23 earlier in the day. Website Patently Apple posted an article Tuesday about Apple (AAPL) receiving a patent for a GoPro-like camera system with superior quality. “Apple’s invention could directly move into GoPro’s territory as the patent specifically mentions the weaknesses of the GoPro devices,” Patently Apple writer Jack Purcher said in his article. The camera system patent, originally filed in March 2012, incorporates intellectual property Apple acquired from Kodak in November 2013, he said. Apple’s patent involves a camera system that can be secured to various objects, such as a bike helmet or scuba mask, or mounted to the handlebars of a motorcycle or the front of a surfboard. The camera…
Apple is ripe for the picking, says Credit Suisse analyst Kulbinder Garcha, who upgraded his rating on the consumer electronics maker on Tuesday to outperform from neutral. Garcha also raised his price target on Apple (AAPL) stock to 130 from 110. Apple stock was up a fraction to about 109 in afternoon trading on the stock market today. It had been up more than 3% earlier in the day. Garcha raised his earnings-per-share estimates, based on “solid and sustainable iPhone volume,” improved profitability and opportunities to return more cash to shareholders. Apple should be able to sell 215 million iPhones each year in fiscal 2015 and 2016, he said. Garcha predicts that gross profit margins from iPhone sales will rise thanks a shift to handsets with bigger screens and richer flash memory configurations. Apple also is due to reconsider its cash return program, given that free cash…